Would you sacrifice a nearly $100,000 car to save someone else’s life?
That’s what one German man did on Monday, when he put his expensive Tesla car on the line to stop an out-of-control vehicle whose driver had passed out — a move that earned praise from Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
While driving in his Tesla on the Autobahn on Monday, 41-year-old Manfred Kick noticed a Volkswagen Passat driving erratically in front of him and swerving in his lane. But when Kick accelerated to pass the Passat, he noticed the driver slumped forward in his seat.
Kick immediately called the fire department and sprung into action. He maneuvered his Tesla in front of the Passat and slowed his car, allowing it to slam into the back bumper of his pricey ride. He then tapped his brakes and gradually allowed the two vehicles to slow to a stop.
The fire department arrived shortly after and attended to the impaired driver, who likely suffered a stroke. He’s currently in stable condition at a local hospital.
Despite his heroic action, Kick was left with thousands of dollars of damage to his Tesla. He told a German newspaper he was unsure whether insurance would cover the cost of the repairs, but that it was more important that his fellow driver would be OK.
But on Thursday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk put Kick’s mind at ease, tweeting that Tesla would cover all the repair costs to the car in his appreciation for saving a fellow driver’s life.
In appreciation, Tesla is providing all repair costs free of charge and expedited. https://t.co/D68HNJcCoQ
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 15, 2017
Muenchner Merkur reports that both cars combined had more than $10,000 in damage.
Alex Hider is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @alexhider.